Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Ltd., a research‐led, global pharmaceutical company, has launched a biosimilar of the popular anti‐diabetic drug, Liraglutide, for the first time in India. The drug is being marketed under the brand name Lirafit following the approval from the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI). Priced at around INR 100 for a standard dose of 1.2 mg (per day), this will lower the cost of therapy by approximately 70%, and will be available only under prescription.

Liraglutide belongs to the class of glucagon‐like peptide 1 receptor agonist (GLP‐1 RA) drugs, which increase glucose‐dependent insulin secretion and decrease in appropriate glucagon secretion. It has been approved globally for the management of type 2 diabetes mellitus in adult patients in the United States and the European Union.

"Glenmark is proud to introduce Lirafit, a novel and affordable biosimilar of the drug liraglutide, for the first time in India. Clinical trials have shown that it helps improve glycemic control in adult type 2 diabetes mellitus patients along with atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases (ASCVD) and obesity. Liraglutide has also proven to have a positive impact on cardiac and renal safety outcomes among patients in clinical trials, making it an effective choice of treatment for patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. With this launch, we have now ventured into the injectable anti‐diabetic market taking another significant stride in the diabetes therapy space," remarked Alok Malik, President and Business Head ‐ India Formulations, Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Ltd.